Treasurer Jim Chalmers is en route to the US for crucial talks as the IMF delivered a dire forecast for Australia’s inflation rate and warned of a global recession. Dr Chalmers will discuss the economic maelstrom with international counterparts at the IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings, as...
Motorists are cashing in on falling petrol prices following a ceasefire in Iran but relief may be short-lived, with the scenario expected to remain volatile for months. Prices at the bowser have dipped below $2.10 a litre and under $3 for diesel for the first time...
The Iran war has yet to hit Australia’s robust labour market, but a double-blow to unemployment from higher oil prices and the Reserve Bank is on its way. The jobless rate held steady at 4.3 per cent in March, despite the Middle East conflict raising fears...
It is not just about the office playlist: artificial intelligence technology could deepen Australia’s generation gap in the workplace. A study released by analytics firm Amplitude on Thursday found older workers were significantly less likely to trust decisions by AI tools than their younger colleagues, creating...
More Australians will switch to an electric car if petrol prices continue to rise, a study has found, with two in five naming electric and plug-in hybrid electric models as their preferred vehicle choices. The trend has emerged as more motorists named fuel savings as their...
Australians deserve a fairer return on gas extracted from the ground than the embarrassing sums raised through existing resource tax settings, a leading economist argues. Former Treasury secretary and author of a prominent tax review, Ken Henry, says the Australian government’s existing gas revenue regime is...
Private health insurance rebates will be slashed for older Australians to fund essential home care services such as showering and dressing support. The federal government has backed down on a requirement that people receiving aged care support pay $50 an hour for the support services. But the...
Australian airfares are set to stay higher for longer as experts predict neither of the nation’s major carriers will cut prices until fuel-cost hikes subside. Virgin Australia and Qantas are raising fares and cutting capacity to protect earnings, although Virgin said on Wednesday a big spike...
Australia will drastically increase spending on missile defences, drones and AUKUS nuclear submarines in a significant change to the nation’s defence posture to meet a “more dangerous and uncertain world”. Defence Minister Richard Marles laid out the path for Australia’s armed forces for the next two...
Australians are reporting record-low life satisfaction as war in the Middle East sends fuel prices surging and workers fear AI job losses. The population is now less satisfied than during the COVID-19 lockdowns, the latest survey from an Australian National University series finds. The fall between December...